Accurately forecasting demand for products is of great importance in the retail industry as it drives inventory control, purchase planning, work force planning as well as other mission critical activities. Inaccurate retail planning can have an extremely adverse impact on the profits of a retail organization. The relationship between a vendor (supplier of consumer products) and retailer (the seller of such consumer products to the retail customer) is critical. The vendor must understand the retailer's sales goals, among other things, and have an understanding of exactly how the vendor might impact those sales goals. Most retailers have multiple vendors within a specific category of the retail store (such as the social expression or greeting card department). The retailer has overall sales expectations of the vendor, but often times, those overall sales expectations are not so clear. A tool is needed to help translate the retailer's sales goals to the specific vendor. A tool is also needed to help translate the retailer's sales goals to the specific vendor. A tool is also needed to show the impact of certain decisions (new products, promotions, etc.) will have on the overall sales goals for the vendor and the retailer. It is also helpful to have updates in real-time in order to verify the assumptions along the way and make adjustments as necessary. While some very complicated tools may exist, there is a need in the market for a simple tool that quickly and easily communicates the foregoing, to allow the vendor and retailer to make decisions with respect to product purchases, product mixes and various other factors that impact the relationship between the vendor and the retail customer.